1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a coagulating cutter, and more particularly relates to a coagulating cutter wherein living body tissue is grasped between an ultrasonic probe and a jaw, and the living body tissue is subjected to treatment such as incision, excision, coagulation, or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
As of recent years, procedures have come to be performed wherein a slender endoscope is inserted into the body cavity so as to observe organs within the body cavity, and perform various types of medical treatment under endoscopic observation as necessary.
One known method of the aforementioned medical treatment performed under endoscopic observation is to perform medical treatment using a coagulating cutter. In the event that such a coagulating cutter uses ultrasonic waves for example as the energy for subjecting the living body to treatment, the coagulating cutter has a function which enables treatment for the living body tissue such as incision, excision, coagulation, or the like, to be performed with the living body tissue being grasped between an ultrasonic probe and a jaw.
Generally, such a coagulating cutter has a configuration in which an operator-side operating unit is connected to the base end portion of an outer sheath of an insertion portion, with an ultrasonic transducer for generating ultrasonic vibrations being disposed at this operating unit and a treating section for treating the living body tissue being disposed on the tip portion of the outer sheath of the insertion portion.
Also, a vibration transmitting member is inserted through the interior of the outer sheath of the insertion portion, which provides a function of transmitting ultrasonic vibration from the ultrasonic transducer to an ultrasonic probe situated on the treating-section side. The base end portion of the vibration transmitting member is connected to the ultrasonic transducer. Furthermore, a jaw is disposed on the treating section so as to be capable of turning relative to the ultrasonic probe.
Also, an operating handle for performing opening/closing operations of the jaw relative to the ultrasonic probe is provided to the operating unit. Furthermore, a jaw operating rod is inserted through the interior of the outer sheath of the insertion portion so as to be capable of advancing/retracting in the axial direction. The operating rod advances/retracts in the axial direction in accordance with the operations of the operating handle. Furthermore, the jaw of the treating section performs opening/closing operations relative to the ultrasonic probe in accordance with the advancing/retracting actions of the operating rod. Such an arrangement enables the living body tissue to be grasped between the ultrasonic probe and the jaw by performing the closing operation of the jaw. Subsequently, in this state, the ultrasonic vibration is transmitted from the ultrasonic transducer to the ultrasonic probe situated on the treating-section side through the vibration transmitting member. This enables treatment such as incision, excision, coagulation, or the like, of tissue, blood vessels, or the like while coagulating the living body tissue by actions of frictional heat from mechanical vibrations, so as to prevent hemorrhaging.
A larger number of proposals have been made to date with respect to such coagulating cutters, in order to perform more efficiently treatment such as incision, excision, coagulation, or the like, of living body tissue.
For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2002-224133 discloses art relating to an ultrasonic treating device including a treating section of a vibration transmitting member and a grasping section of a jaw for grasping living body tissue, having structures which provide these two components such that they are in uniformly close contact in the jaw-closed state. Such an ultrasonic treating device offers stable coagulation/incision performance.
Also, U.S. Pat. No. 5,322,055 discloses art relating to a device including a blade (probe) formed at the tip end portion of a vibration member having a knife-shaped incision portion and a coagulation face having a substantially arc-shaped cross-section. Furthermore, such an arrangement has a mechanism which enables the operating state to be switched between the state in which the incision portion of the blade is situated so as to face the jaw and the state in which the coagulation face is situated so as to face the jaw. In a case of switching to the state in which the incision portion of the blade is situated so as to face the jaw, the aforementioned device exhibits higher incision performance around the grasped portion of the living body tissue. On the other hand, in a case of switching to the state in which the coagulation face of the blade is situated so as to face the jaw, the aforementioned device exhibits higher coagulation performance around the grasped portion of the living body tissue.
Also, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 8-275951 discloses art relating to a device including a jaw having a coagulation face formed with a large contact area which is to be in contact with living body tissue and an incision portion having a small contact area which is to be in contact with living body tissue. Furthermore, such an arrangement has a mechanism which enables the operating state to be switched between the state in which the incision portion of the jaw is situated so as to face the blade and the state in which the coagulation face of the jaw is situated so as to face the blade. In a case of switching to the state in which the incision portion of the jaw is situated so as to face the blade, the aforementioned device exhibits higher incision performance around the grasped portion of the living body tissue. On the other hand, in a case of switching to the state in which the coagulation face of the jaw is situated so as to face the blade, the aforementioned device exhibits higher coagulation performance around the grasped portion of the living body tissue.
Also, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2000-254138 discloses art relating to an ultrasonic treating device having a configuration in which a contact portion for coagulating a treated portion grasped between a grasping member and a vibration transmitting member is provided to at least a part of the faces of the aforementioned grasping member and the aforementioned probe, which face each other. Such an arrangement allows the treated portion grasped between the grasping member and the vibration transmitting member to be coagulated when the grasping member, which grasp living body tissue against the probe through the vibration transmitting member, is operated so as to be closed.